Office Mates

Office Crush

Have you ever met someone who seems different to their core? You might even begin to question if you are from another planet. And then, as fate would have it, you are smacked together. You both have been forced to share a singular space. Your office space. How is this supposed to work?----------------------------------------------

Tuesday afternoon at Blahco. Two people, a man, and a woman, share an office space. Marian's side of the office is a complete mess. Her desk is cluttered. Piles of papers are grouped into arrangements that can only be discerned by her. Dispersed throughout the paper piles are three coffee cups from separate days. On the wall behind her monitor are pictures of her and her friends. They are clumped together without any overall organization. Around her monitor are a few small action figures from her favorite anime. There is no space on her side of the office free from her things, except for the ceiling. On the other side of the office is Robin. A person could mistake that there was even someone assigned to work at his desk. There are no papers, pictures, or other signs of life. Only two things on Robin's desk are his physical calendar and his headphones. He uses the calendar to write down deadlines for work. The headphones he uses to cover up any conversations happening in the office. The headphones are either on their designated hook or on his head.

Robin and Marian are also opposites when it comes to their appearance. Robin comes to work every day in the same clothes. He found a shirt and pants that he liked enough to buy multiple pairs. He stands over 6 feet tall. He has dark brown eyes and black hair. He gets his haircut at the same barber every six weeks, on the dot. His dark brown eyes are guarded; they never give away an indication of what he is thinking. His build is slight because he is careful about what he eats and goes for a run every day. Robin's trademark at work is his big, over-the-ear headphones. He uses them instead of earbuds for even better noise cancellation.

Marian is 5 feet 5 inches. She has light brown hair that is constantly changing colors. Each new color change is a reflection of her mood. Her clothes are as diverse as her hairstyles. As an engineer, Marian doesn't pay much attention to fashion, but she loves to go out with friends and shop. Her light brown eyes light up with a big smile. Marian hasn't met a person that she couldn't befriend. Marian's face is round and cute, and her cheeks have always been extra squishy. She has never taken health and fitness seriously and would rather spend her free time with her friends, going to new places.

The two share an office at Blahco. Their company is made up of contract engineers. Marian picked this job four years ago because she hoped she wouldn't get bored. She got hired by Kris and Jace. Marian and Kris were the only two females in their department until the recent hiring of Aurora. Robin has been at Blahco for a year. His engineering degree is in a different specialization, but he was desperate for a new job so that he could pay rent.

Robin begins to look out the office window into the hallway. Aurora, the newest hire at Blahco, is walking to her office next door. Marian watches Robin as his eyes track Aurora's path down the hall. Aurora is an office goddess. She is tall, blonde, and has striking blue eyes. She walks into work with outfits that look like they have been pulled off a runway. Marian has no idea how Aurora ended up as an engineer. Marian caught Robin looking at Aurora before. She can't figure out what is stopping him from asking Aurora out, because he is interested in her. Perhaps Aurora has a boyfriend. That is the only reason Marian can come up with that might be holding her office mate back from asking Aurora out.

It's been months of Robin watching Aurora. Marian's curiosity has reached its peak, and she is about to ask Robin why he hasn't invited Aurora to coffee when she is interrupted by the opening of their office door. In walks Kris, the supervisor for Robin and Marian's department. Kris is skinny, fair, and has dark black hair that is cut very short. She is wearing a man's slacks and a light blue button-up shirt. Kris walks over to Marian's desk and asks Marian a question. "Marian, do you think you will have time to start this before the weekend?" Kris places a notebook down next to Marian's computer. It has the information about the new client and their request. Kris sets it down on top of an already existing pile of notebooks. Marian looks at Kris and smiles, "Of course! I don't have much going on the next few nights, so I can stay late if I need to." Kris smiles at Marian, "Perfect. And what about you, Robin?" Robin has his head down with his headphones on, and he is looking at the computer. He has no idea that his manager is in his office. It's not until Kris starts to wave her hands in front of him that he finally looks and realizes Kris is in the room. He quickly removes his headphones and puts them down next to his keyboard.